Shambles – Primitive Death Trance

Shambles have been active since 1997 and have over four demos, two splits, a full length, a compilation and two Ep’s. There newest release is an EP titled Primitive Death Trance which was originally released in late December 2017 and has been recently released on 12” vinyl too. Having a combination of a death and doomy style of metal, while projecting a very dirty distorted sound, this EP carries one into the gloomy depths as well as the extreme. Open notes, tremolo picking and sustaining chords ring out, holding sway in the overall mix level, accompanied by deep monstrous vocals and drums that are present but sound a bit quiet and in the distance. For the most part, there seems to be two tempos used here, that go from a slower beat carrying all instruments through a slow drone-like haze that picks up only slightly at times, along with some variations from the beats within these parts as well. Then suddenly, all out breaks out, almost in an instant, where everything kicks into overdrive going full tilt in aggression and speed, taking this dirge drone-like tone that Shambles have to another level, where all sounds like a giant swarm of something flying over head for the attack. Primitive Death Trance, as the title for this EP lives up to its name in the concept sense and doomy overtones that are quite present here all together, yet in some ways lacks a bit of definition in the final music presentation. Even though, this is not necessarily a bad thing, perhaps it depends on what one goes for, for the final effect or a production sense. 7/10 Wolven Deadsoul